PLANET AGAFRA - TOLLINDO CITY

Loud crunching came from the roof of The Carnage Canary as the vehicle jerked backward. Ember had nano-seconds to duck out of the way before 3 large claws pierced through the roof like a knife through butter, but the most terrifying moment was seeing a body fly forward in the air.

Ember locked the wheel all the way to the left, stomping his foot on the accelerator as hard as the pedal would allow him. The metal arm peeled away the rest of the roof like a sardine tin, leaving just the bare bones of the cabin behind. The Canary continued to spin a full 180 degrees until Ember was driving in reverse away from Predator. 

THUNK! 

“Ai!” Echo gasped, rolling on the floor in the back while cradling an arm.

“Injuries?”

“Minor,” his twin confirmed before coughing profusely into their closed fist. The black and green breather mask had come loose in the impact and the freshly painted teeth on the front of it were badly scuffed up.

“Does it still work?” Ember asked, though his attention was on navigating the remaining stretch of the road while reversing. The Canary skirted around a large sinkhole in the road, jostling the vehicle. There wasn’t a lot of time for small talk.

Ember didn’t have the luxury of looking back to see where their assailant was with the road as rough as it was, not to mention his long hair was blowing wildly in his eyes now that nothing blocked the elements.

Echo took a laboured gulp of air, chest heaving and hands trembling as they re-attached the mask. After a second, the mana gage lit up and Echo seemed to visibly relax again. “It’s good,” they confirmed, pushing to their knees. After a moment of digging around under the seat Echo pulled out another rifle and box of ammunition.

‘Wow-wee, folks! Did you catch a glimpse of that little birdie fly? What a catch from Ember in the driver’s seat. Any later and our boy, Echo, would have been crushed like a bug!’ the drone cried out, circling overhead to get a good view inside The Canary. ‘The Predator is raging like a beast. Can it catch up to its agile prey?’

As if on cue, there was a loud ‘SCREE! CRUNCH!’  of Predator’s pincers opening and closing that ground into Ember’s eardrums. It sounded extremely close.

“Hidden ditch in 500 metres,” Ember warned, still looking out the vacant space that was once a back window. He felt like every nerve in his body was on pins and needles as he swerved around a large chunk of a ruined building.

They’d driven this track so many times that navigating it felt like second nature to Ember, despite they were reversing. A part of him lamented the fact that even after their thirteenth race, they had still never actually made it to the finish line.

Echo awkwardly crawled into the front passenger seat, trying not to obstruct Ember’s view. They aimed the new rifle at their opponent and audibly sighed.

“Our roof is still stuck in the claws. I can’t see around it. We’ll have to ditch them,” Echo resigned, voice distorted by the mask. They didn’t wait for a response before bracing themselves low in the passenger seat.

The filthiest grin spread across Ember’s face. He swerved hard, picking a narrow path through the debris. It was a smooth road that weaved and curved so much that larger vehicles couldn’t follow, but both The Canary and Predator would find it easy enough.

“Incoming!” Echo called, holding onto the dashboard.

Ember braced himself on the old leather seat as well. He counted to himself under his breath, waiting… 1… 2… 3…

SCREE! CRUNCH!

The shadow of the claw arm and left-over-Canary, blocked out the harsh midday sun as it loomed over them. A piece of scrap metal landed roughly on the hood of The Canary, jerking it slightly.

BANG! Reload. BANG! Reload. 

4!

Ember veered suddenly to the right and smashed a green button on the dashboard. Small jet engines under the front of The Canary engaged and a quick burst propelled it well out of reach of Predator as the arm came down again, aimed at the engine. 

As Ember sucked in a deep breath, The Canary hit an incline and propelled up a slanted wall, turning over on itself. They were suddenly airborne– but they were also upside down. The contents of Ember’s stomach fought to escape through his mouth as he peered ‘up’ at the ground.

The sensation of freefall was overwhelming as they passed over the top of Predator and the chasm that the Predator was headed straight into. Adrenaline slowed time long enough for Ember to see their opponent skidding before they hit a piece of debris that sent them hurtling into the split in the ground.

The Canary fell back toward the ground, still spinning. If Ember had timed it right, they would have landed the right way up. If he didn’t… well he supposed they would never know he didn’t.

‘They’ve done it again!’ the drones announced the second wheels hit solid ground and The Canary bounced. ‘The Carnage Canary has evaded certain doom once more!’

The Canary careened erratically under Ember’s hands as he fought desperately for control. The vehicle spun a full 360 degrees three times before the brakes finally slowed it down to a complete stop.

Ember and Echo exchanged a glance with each other before they both threw their heads back and howled into the sky. 

‘Gentlefolks, we’re blessed again this day to see some of the best of the best out there! We’re down to seven racers left on the road. Dom-The-Distructor and Skidmark are still vying for first place! The Carnage Canary is now in third! We’ve just reached the halfway mark, it’s still anyman’s game at this stage!’

“Tag out,” Echo demanded, handing Ember the rifle. “My arm’s busted, I can’t keep it steady.”

Ember nodded and scrambled into the back of the cabin. “It’s sticking to the left. Jets have a quarter tank left,” he said as he pulled a toolbox out from under the front passenger seat and unpacked a battery-powered drill.

The Canary was off again, speeding away down the rough, bumpy road to catch up to the other racers.

Unlike Echo, Ember was about 6’2” so he appreciated the new skylight Predator had installed in their vehicle as he bolted the end of his tether to the floor in the rear. Even though they were twins, the only physical features they shared were their tan skin tone, black hair and gold-coloured eyes, stained from mana poisoning.

‘Oh-ho! Skidmark missed by a hair!’ the drone informed them. ‘Dom-The-Distructor has taken back the lead in a stunning display of true strength! Will our reigning champion win again this season?’

“Set!” Ember called out as he braced himself against the backseat, now tethered in place. Echo smashed a blue button on the dash, engaging the jets again, this time on the rear to propel them forward and back onto the main road as the Canary drifted around a corner.

They weren’t alone.

Behind them on the main track, another two vehicles had almost caught up. The momentary stop had reduced The Canary’s lead by a significant margin.

Ember aimed through the sight and groaned, “It’s Jim.”

“Por que agora?” Echo whined.

Jim was one of the most frustrating opponents. The vehicle was twice the size of The Canary with particularly large harpoon guns mounted to the sides and undercarriage; six in total. One of them had already snagged Lime-to-Shine, a vibrant green vehicle equipped with large spikes on the front designed for ramming. 

Lime-to-Shine swayed to and fro in front of the hulking behemoth, Jim, as both vehicles bounced over rubble and wrestled for control. Lime-to-Shine’s ‘passenger’ was occupied trying to cut the line with a chainsaw.

FSHHH!

“Harpoon!” Ember shouted as an oversized steel rod approached. 

The Canary slid hard to one side, out of the path of the harpoon’s linear trajectory. The spear smashed into a large piece of concrete before the cable reeled it back toward Jim.

BANG! Reload.

Ember cackled maniacally as the single rifle shot severed the cable. 

‘Aaaaaaaand Skidmark is down for the count! After holding on for so long, our speedy little friends have reached the end of their journey at the mercy of Dom-the-Distructor!’ the announcer screamed. Suddenly the twins found themselves fighting for second place.

VROOM!

A quick glance at Lime-to-Shine confirmed they had broken free and were speeding toward The Canary in a great rush, engine revving. Ember could see the passenger posed and ready with his chainsaw.

BANG! Reload. BANG! Reload. BANG! Reload.

Every one of Ember’s shots missed their mark of Lime-to-Shine’s tyres and he swore. He was a good shot, but not nearly as good as Echo. Without Jim slowing them down, Lime-to-Shine was a much bigger threat. 

FSHHHH! FSHHHH!

A harpoon struck Lime-to-Shine’s rear, yanking it backward hard enough that the passenger lost their footing.

Another one sailed over Lime-to-Shine and embedded itself in the backseat of The Canary, between Ember’s legs. Ember squealed, his face drained of blood as The Canary heaved under his feet and he nearly fell. The harpoon had missed his leg by a hair; he hadn’t even seen it coming while he was looking through the rifle scope.

“We’ve been snagged!” he squeaked.

“I know!” Echo hissed, fighting hard to keep The Canary on a straight course.

The drag of the harpoon pulled them closer to Jim and Lime-to-Shine as both the smaller vehicles swerved.

‘Looks like Jim has managed to hook onto two little fish! Can they get away again this time? With The Carnage Canary worse for wear, it’s going to be a tight fight for second place!’

Ember’s feet left the floor as The Canary hit a large bump. He stumbled clumsily, trying to avoid the harpoon spear between his legs. He slung the rifle over his shoulder as he carefully moved away from the spear to grab the toolbox again. After a moment of rummaging, he produced a large pair of wire cutters.

Although the harpoon spear had embedded itself in the back seat, the cable it was attached to was only accessible from the outside of the vehicle; at the point of initial penetration. Ember’s heart fluttered wildly in his chest as he unbuckled the tether that kept him anchored inside.

“Terra, salve-me,” he prayed as he slowly crawled over the back seat.

The Canary swayed around another obstacle, forcing him to hold on for dear life lest he slide right off. He bit his lip and glanced up to check on the situation.

Ember couldn’t tell if Jim was approaching them, or they were approaching Jim; the gap was definitely closing. However, Lime-to-Shine was still in that gap, free again to aim those lengthy metal spikes at the back of The Canary. That gap was closing a lot faster.

Profanities filled Ember’s thoughts as he clung to the outside of The Canary with one arm and tried to cut the cable with the other. The wire was thicker than the cutters could get through in one go. Ember resorted to twisting and sawing with the cutters to try and fray the cable bit by bit while keeping an eye on the spikes that were getting closer and closer.

“Hold on!” Echo shouted.

Ember didn’t have time to react before The Canary collided with a large piece of concrete rubble. Exposed jutting metal supports from inside the structure sliced through the side of the vehicle. He clung desperately to the back of The Canary as the wire cutters flew out of his hand and bounced off the front of Lime-to-Shine. One of his legs slid off the back, nearly reaching the ground.

This time the profanities were loudly vocalised.

“Lime’s too close!” he called, heaving himself back up to safety. “We’re still hooked.”

“Aim for the wheels again!”

Ember fumbled one of his legs over the back seat again so that he straddled the back of The Canary like a horse and took aim with the rifle again.

VROOM!

BANG! Reload.

CRASH!

Lime-to-Shine smashed into the rubble that had torn up The Canary. Ember had hit the steering wheel.

The Lime-to-Shine wreckage bounced high up in the air.

FSHHHH!

A second harpoon struck and The Carnage Canary was hauled backward, right into the path of Lime-to-Shine’s trajectory.

Ember watched in terror as the other vehicle came down, smashing right onto The Canary.

‘Wipeout! Jim zooms into second place! Only 5 racers left and a third of the track to go! Things are looking good for Dom-the-Distructor!’